Metal twisting apparatus



1966 w. o. PHILLIPS 3,267,714

METAL TWISTING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 14, 1963 :3 Sheets-Sheet 1 I 55 i i 58 /4 4 '5 I II I 2 I I I I [film II I I I I I 152 I I I 54 I 53 I II I 47 62 70 I 64 I 7 INVENTOR 9 William 0. Phillips A TTOR/VEY Aug. 23, 1966 w. o. PHILLIPS METAL TWISTING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 14, 1963 INVENTOR.

William 0. Phillips A TTORNE Y Aug. 23, 1966 w. o. PHILLIPS METAL TWISTING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Nov. 14, 1963 INVENTOR.

William 0. Phillips ATTORNEY 3,267,714 Patented August 23, 1966 3,267,714 METAL TWISTING APPARATUS Wiiliarn 0. Phillips, Rte. 3, Selma, N.C. Filed Nov. 14, 1963, Ser. No. 323,665 3 Claims. (Ci. 72-299) This invention relates generally to metal twisting apparatus and, more particularly, to apparatus for twisting elongated metal workpieces such as iron bars and flats.

Heretofore, a number of different machines have been proposed for twisting elongated metal workpieces, such as iron bars and flats, into decorative pieces suitable for use in ornamental railings, columns, and the like. Although the more recent twisting machines have been power driven, the twisting operation is still rather slow and cumbersome because of the necessity of manually placing each individual bar in the machine, clamping it firmly in place, and then releasing and removing it after the twisting operation has been completed. In order for the machine operator to perform all these manual operations, the machine must be stopped after the twisting of each bar.

It is, therefore, the main object of this invention to provide an improved metal twisting machine.

It is another object of the invention to provide such a machine which automatically ejects each bar after it has been twisted a predetermined amount.

A further object is to provide such a machine which permits a new bar to be rapidly inserted after the previous bar has been automatically ejected, whereby the bar transfer can be accomplished without stopping the machine.

A still further object is to provide such a machine which is adapted to twist both bars and flats without changing parts.

Still another object is to provide such a machine which is power driven.

Other aims and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and appended claims.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of one embodiment of the machine of this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of the machine of FIGURE 1;

FIGURES 3, 4, and 5 are fragmentary end elevations taken along line 3-3 in FIGURE 1 and showing the rotatable clamping member and the automatic release mechanism at various phases of the twisting operation;

FIGURE 6 is an elevation taken along the line 6-6 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 7 is an elevation taken along line 7-7 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 8 is an enlargement of a portion of the elevation of FIGURE 1 and showing a twisted bar being released by pivoting.

The invention Will be described in more detail by referring to the specific embodiment illustrated in the drawings.

Referring first to FIGURES 1 and 2, the illustrated machine includes a rigid supporting frame comprising a plurality of vertical angle leg members 9 connected to a plurality of horizontal longitudinal and lateral angle frame members 10, 11. As can be seen in FIGURE 7 the horizontal longitudinal members 10 are positioned to provide upper horizontal flanges 12 which are used as tracks for horizontal movement of one of the chucks, as described in more detail hereinafter. The horizontal longitudinal members 10 also form a center opening 13 which is sufliciently large to allow the twisted workpieces to pass to a receiving bin (not shown) as they are ejected from the machine.

The rigid horizontal supporting frame comprising members 10 and 11 mounts a gear train housing 14, which in turn supports a motor 16. The motor 16 is connected to a conventional speed reducing gear train (not shown) inside the housing 14 by means of a pulley 18 on the end of the motor drive shaft, a pulley 20 connected to one end of the gear train, and a V-belt 22 connecting the two pulleys.

The main drive shaft 24 of the gear train extends out from one end of the housing 14 and is rigidly connected to a rotatable chuck 26 adapted to hold one end of the metal workpiece represented by the dotted lines 28. The chuck 26 includes a block 30 having a workpiece receiving opening 32 and a pair of clamping members 34 and 36 movably mounted within the block 30. Clamping member 34 is positioned by means of a bolt 38 which threads into a nut 41) so that the position of the member 34 can be adjusted by turning the bolt 38. Bolt 38 can be arranged to simply rest against member 34 in which case member 34 can be moved in only one direction by turning bolt 38. In another form (not shown), bolt 38 may be provided with a suitable rotatable connection to member 34. In this latter form turning of bolt 38 can be utilized to move the member 34 in either direction.

At the opposite end of the block 30 from the bolt 38, the clamping member 36 is engaged by a cam 42 secured to a rotatable shaft 44. Rotation of the shaft 44 and the cam 42 is controlled by an arm 46 which is rigidly connected to the shaft 44 and extends outwardly therefrom beyond the end of the block 30. A spring 47 is connected between the drive shaft 24 and the arm 46 and is tensioned so as to hold the cam 42 in engagement with the clamping member 36. It will be seen that only the upper portion of the block 30 is provided with a slot for rotation of the cam 42, so the cam can actually be rotated only 180. Clamping members 34, 36 are further restrained in their positions by means of the set screws 48, 49 bearing on the spring and ball arrangement which engage the clamping members as illustrated by spring 50 and ball 51 in FIGURE 3.

Extending back from the block 30 toward the housing 14 is a bearing sleeve 52 which is connected to both the block 30 and a small gear wheel 53. The small gear wheel 53 mates with a larger gear wheel 54 on the end of a shaft 56 which is rotatably mounted in a pair of bearing sleeves 58 supported by a pair of vertical members 60. Thus, whenever motor 16 is energized gear 53 will be caused to rotate, counterclockwise as viewed in FIGURES 35.

Protrudin'g outwardly from the center of the gear Wheel 54 and secured thereto is an annular ring 62. Mounted Within annular ring 62 is another annular ring 6 3 which supports a cam welded to its exposed surface, the cam 70 being transversely aligned with the arm 46. The ring 63 is held in place by means of a set screw 64. Cam 70 may thus be positioned relative to ring 62 by loosening set screw 64 and rotating ring 63 within ring 62 and then tightening screw 64. The operation .of the rotatable chuck 26 and the cam 70 will hereinafter be described in more detail.

As can be seen in FIGURES 1 and 2, the elongated metal workpiece 28 to be twisted is held firmly in place by a pair of chucks 26 and 76. The chuck 76 is mounted on a vertical supporting plate member 78 which is movably mounted on the flanges 12 of the longitudinal horizontal frame members 10 so that the chuck 76 can be advanced and retracted horizontally with respect to the rotatable chuck 26, thereby enabling the machine to receive workpieces of different lengths. The supporting member 78 is mounted by means of a pair of grooves 80 adjacent flanges 82 which mate with the horizontal flanges 12 on the horizontal longitudinal frame members 10. In other words, the horizontal flanges 12 serve as track-s over which 3 the member 78 can be advanced and retracted with respect to the chuck 26. The top flange 82 on one end of the member 78 is provided with a threaded hole which receives a bolt 84 to lock the member 7% firmly in place at the desired position. The bolt 84- is provided with a handle 36 for convenience in turning the bolt 84.

Referring now to FIGURE 6, the end of the chuck 76 facing the chuck 26 when mounted as shown is provided with a vertical groove 38 adapted to receive the end of the workpiece 28 in the shape of a square bar. The groove 88 is provided with vertical side walls 39 and 9% which are stepped inwardly so that the chuck 72 can receive two different sizes of square bars. For example, the outside walls 89 can be spaced 0.25 inch apart and the inside walls 99 0.5 inch apart. Of course, it will be apparent that additional steps may be provided if it is desired to have the chuck 76 receive more than two different sizes of bars. In any event however, the dimensions of the groove must be sufficiently close to those of the particular bar to be twisted so that the end of the bar is held stationary in the chuck.

Referring next to FIGURE 7, the end of the chuck 76 facing away from the chuck 26 is provided, when mounted as shown, with a tapered groove 92 adapted to receive the end of a workpiece in the shape of a metal fiat such as a .piece of steel A inch by inch. The upper portion of the groove 92 is provided with sloping walls 93 which taper downwardly and inwardly to short vertical side wall 94 at the bottom of the groove. When the end of a metal flat is placed in the groove 92 and twisted, the main surface of the flat is forced against one of the sloping walls 93 so that the flat is prevented from rotating in the chuck 76. When it is desired to twist flats rat-her than bars, the supporting member 78 is withdrawn from the tracks 12, turned 180, and remounted on the tracks with the groove ?2 facing the chuck 26. That is, the twisting machine of the invention is readily adapted to twisting either so called flats having a rectangular cross section or square bars having a square cross section. The groove 88 is adapted to handle square bars whereas the groove 92 is adapted to :handle flat bars. The chuck 26 can receive either squares or flats however in the form of the invention shown it is necessary to position chuck 76 according to whether squares or flats are being twisted. Groove 88 must of course face chuck 26 when squares are being twisted whereas groove 92 must face chuck 26 when flats are being twisted.

Returning to FIGURES 1 and 2, rigid fingers 94, 95 are connected to the supporting member 78 below each end of the chuck 76. The fingers 94, 95 are curved upwardly so that the end of each finger is at substantially the same level as the bottom of the groove 88 or 92 adjacent thereto. As will be seen from the ensuing description, the fingers 94, 95 act as fulcrums about which the workpiece 28 pivots when it is released from the rotatable chuck 26, thereby raising the end of the workpiece out of the chuck '76 so that the finished workpiece drops down through the frame to the floor or a suitable receptacle, not shown, arranged to receive the ejected workpiece.

Operation In operating the subject machine to twist a metal bar, one end of the bar is first placed between the clamping members 34and 36 in the rotatable chuck 26 with the cam 42 in its fully advanced position. If the space between the two clamping members has not been previously adjusted, the bolt 33 may be adjusted in order to be able to advance or retract the member 34 so that the Workpiece is held firmly between the two clamping members 34and 36. The other chuck 76 is then positioned to engage the other end of the workpiece by moving the supporting member 78 along the flanges 12 until the end of the workpiece is fitted firmly within the appropriate portion of the groove 88 if a square piece is being twisted or groove 92 if a fiat piece is being twisted. The momer 7S and the chuck 76 are then secured by turning the bolt 84 tightly against the flange 12, and the motor 16 is started to commence the twisting operation.

V/hen the motor 16 is started, the rotatable chuck 26 and the two gear wheels 53 and 54 are in the positions shown in FIGURE 3. As the twisting operation proceeds, the rotatable chuck 26 and the small gear wheel 53 are rotated counterclockwise, while the large gear wheel 54 is rotated clockwise. In the particular operation illustrated in FIGURES 3 through 5, the machine continues to operate in this manner through two complete revolutions of the chuck 26, which represents about two thirds of a revolution of the large gear wheel 54 and the cam 70 attached thereto. As the chuck 26 approaches the end of the first half of its third revolution, the relatively rapidly rotating arm 46 engages the relatively slowly rotating cam 70, as shown in FIGURE 4. This causes the arm 46 to be rotated to its retracted position, illustrated in FIGURE 5, whereby the cam 42 is retracted so as to release the clamping member 36. As the clamping member 36 is released, the pressure from the twisted workpiece forces the member 36 back toward the cam 4-2, thereby releasing the workpiece from the chuck 26. Since the chuck 26 is in an inverted position at this point, gravitational forces cause the workpiece to fall out of the chuck 2s and chuck 76 (FIGURE 8).

As the one end of the workpiece 23 falls out of the chuck 26, the workpiece pivots about the protruding finger 94 or 95 depending on which groove, whether 88 or 92, is being used so as to lift the other end of the workpiece out of the chuck 76. The work-piece then slides downwardly over the finger 94 or 95, as the case may be, and falls through the frame. This completes the automatic ejection of the twisted bar from the machine and frees the machine for insert-ion of the next bar. Since the bar is ejected at the position shown in FIGURE 5, it will be seen that approximately half a revolution remains before the chuck 25 returns to its starting position. Since the chuck 26 is moving at a relatively slow speed, the operator has ample time to insert a new bar after the chucks have ejected the twisted bar. Thus as chuck 26 returns to the FIGURE 3 position, the operator can drop a fresh bar in place while the machine continues to run.

It can be seen from the foregoing description that the starting positions of the control arm 46 and the cam 70 must be such that these two members engage each other at some predetermined point where the desired degree of twisting has been produced in the workpiece. It will also be seen that the arm 46 is located such that it can come into contact with the cam 78 only when the chuck 26 is in an inverted position, s0 that the workpiece is sure to be ejected when the arm 46 is retracted. If it is desired to twist the workpiece to a lesser degree than in the operati on described above, the set screw 64 may be loosened and the ring 63 rotated to position the cam 70 at a more advanced position.

While one specific form of the present invention has been illustrated and described herein in some detail, it will be apparent that the same is susceptible of numerous modifications within the scope of the invention. For example, although the maximum twist that can be produced by the particular gears illustrated in FIGURES 3-5 is about 2.5 revolutions, substantially higher twists can be readily achieved by providing the machine with gears having a larger speed ratio.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for twisting an elongated metalworkpiece such as a square or rectangular shaped ornamental bar, which apparatus comprises first chuck means for holding one end of said elongated workpiece, said first chuck means including clamping means for clamping said end of said workpiece; second chuck means for supporting the other end of said workpiece in a non-rotating position; means for rotating said first chuck means about the axis of said workpiece so as to twist said workpiece;

means effective to automatically release said clamping means so as to release the end of said workpiece on said first chuck means after producing a predetermined amount of twist in said workpiece; and means effective to pivot the released workpiece in a vertical plane so as to release the other end thereof from said second chuck means.

2. Apparatus for twisting an elongated metal workpiece such as a square or rectangular shaped ornamental bar, which apparatus comprises a supporting frame including a pair of parallel horizontal tracks; non-rotatable chuck means slidably mounted on said tracks for horizontal movement, said non-rotatable chuck means having a slot therein for holding one end of said workpiece in a stationary position; rotatable chuck means spaced away from said non-rotatable chuck means, said rotatable chuck means having an adjustable slot therein for holding the other end of said workpiece in a stationary position within said rotatable chuck means; means for rotating said rotatable chuck means about the axis of said workpiece so as to twist said workpiece; means for automatically releasing said workpiece from said rotatable chuck means after a predetermined number of revolutions thereof so that one end of said workpiece drops by action of its weight out of said rotatable chuck means; and means for pivoting the released workpiece in a vertical plane so as to lift the other end of said workpiece out of said non-rotatable chuck means.

3. Apparatus for twisting an elongated metal workpiece such as 'a square or rectangular shaped bar, which apparatus comprises a supporting frame including a pair of horizontal tracks and a center opening adapted to pass the twisted metal workpiece; a non-rotatable chuck slidably mounted on said tracks for horizontal movement, said non-rotatable chuck having a vertical slot in one end thereof and being open at the top for receiving and holding one end of said workpiece in a stationary position; a rotatable chuck spaced away from said non-rotatable chuck and having a vertical slot therein for receiving the other end of said workpiece; a pair of adjustable clamping members mounted within said rotatable chuck for clamping said workpiece within said slot; a movable control arm advancing one of said clamping members to a clamping position and for releasing said one clamping member; means for rotating said rotatable chuck and said clamping members and control arm around the axis of said workpiece so as to twist said workpiece; cam means for engaging and moving said control arm after a predetermined number of revolutions so as to release said clamping member when said rotatable chuck is in an inverted position, whereby the one end of said workpiece is caused to drop out of said rotatable chuck; and an upwardly extending fulcrum arm for pivoting the released workpiece in a vertical plane so as to lift the other end of said workpiece out of said non-rotatable chuck.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,468,717 4/1949 Wennberg 72299 CHARLES W. LANHAM, Primary Examiner.

R. D. GREFE, Assistant Examiner. 

1. APPARATUS FOR TWISTING AN ELONGATED METAL WORKPIECE SUCH AS A SQUARE OR RECTANGULAR SHAPED ORNAMENTAL BAR, WHICH APPARATUS COMPRISES FIRST CHUCK MEANS FOR HOLDING ONE END OF SAID ELONGATED WORKPIECE, SAID FIRST CHUCK MEANS INCLUDING CLAMPING MEANS FOR CLAMPING SAID END OF SAID WORKPIECE; SECOND CHUCK MEANS FOR SUPPORTING THE OTHER END OF SAID WORKPIECE IN A NON-ROTATING POSITION; MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID FIRST CHUCK MEANS ABOUT THE AXIS OF SAID WORKPIECE SO AS TO TWIST SAID WORKPIECE; MEANS EFFECTIVE TO AUTOMATICALLY RELEASE SAID CLAMPING MEANS SO AS TO RELEASE THE END OF SAID WORKPIECE ON SAID FIRST CHUCK MEANS AFTER PRODUCING A PREDETERMINED AMOUNT OF TWIST IN SAID WORKPIECE; AND MEANS EFFECTIVE TO PIVOT THE RELEASED WORKPIECE IN A VERTICAL PLANE SO AS TO RELEASE THE OTHER END THEREOF FROM SAID SECOND CHUCK MEANS. 